Vacuum or hand-actuated by-pass valve for steam-engines



(No Model.) 2 Sheets--Sheet I.

J. M. SBABLE. VACUUM 0R HAND AOTUATED BY-PASS VALVE FOR STEAM ENGINES.No. 524,614. Patented Aug. 14, 1894.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

'J. M. SEARLE. VACUUM 0R HAND AG'IfUATE'D BY-PASS VALVE FOR STEAMENGINES. No. 524,614. Patented Aug. 14, 1894.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH MINER SEARLE, OF GRAND RIVERS, KENTUCKY.

VACUUM 0R HAND-ACTUATED BY-PASS VALVE FOR STEAM-ENGINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 524,614, dated August14, 1894.

Application filed April 19,1394.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that- I, JOSEPH MINER SEARLE, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Grand Rivers, Livingston county, Kentucky, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Vacuum or Hand-ActuatedBy- Pass Valves for Steam-Engines, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to vacuum, or hand actuated by-pass valves forsteam engines.

In condensing steam engines now in use there is frequently a disastrousback flow of water from the condenser to the engine; and where reliefand check valves areused upon the exhausts of such engine to preventthis, the weight upon such valves causes a serious back pressureinterfering with the economical operation of i the engine; and it oftenhappens that a vacuum, after having broken, reforms with V suchfrequency as to cause dangerous racing of the engine.

The objects of my invention are to overcome these serious objections byproviding a free exhaust valve for a steam engine which can beautomatically opened to the atmosphere and locked in such position,cutting out the condenser and turning the exhaust into the atmosphere. Iattain these objects by the improvement now to be described andillustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1, is a vertical longitudinal section of the valve, the spindlethereof being shown in elevation with the upper end in broken section.Fig. 2, is a similar view of the valve closed to the condenser and opento the at mosphere. Fig. 3, is a vertical cross section on line 33, Fig.2. Figs. 4 and 5, show the valve in section applied to the Worthingtonand Bulkley condenser, respectively.

My valve is located between the engine and the condenser in the exhaustpipe, E, to which the valve shell or casing, A, provided with flanges,or threaded ends, is secured by suitable bolts, or threaded endscorresponding to those of exhaust pipe. As shown, this valve chamber ispreferably of circular cross section, and is provided'upon each sidethereof with flanged or threaded extensions, T, havin g passages whichcommunicate with the exhaust pipe of the engine and with the atmosphere.The bottom of the valve casing has a flanged extension, T, to be securedto the Serial No. 508,202. (No model.)

pipe or passage leading to the condenser. Projecting interiorly from thebottom and top of the valve casing are two circular flanges, F, G, towhich is preferably secured the ring, R, forming the upper valve seat.The lower valve seat is formed at the bottom of the valve chamber by aring, R', upon which the valve, B, is adapted to the seat for thepurpose of cutting off communication between the engine and thecondenser. Through the side of the flange, F, is a port opening, (1,through which the exhaust may be directed to the condenser or to theatmosphere, according as the valve is closed against its lower or upperseat.

Secured to the stem, D, passing through a suitable stuifing box, N, isthe disk valve, B, and the piston, 0, above the same, the latter beingadapted to reciprocate in the vacuum chamber at the top of the valvecasing. This chamber is of greater sectional area than the opening inthe valve seat and the piston, O, has a greater area than the valve, B,so that the tendency of the vacuum acting between the two is to raisethe valve to its upper seat because of the greater area of the piston.This vacuum chamber is connected below the lower valve seat with thepassage leading to the condenser by a small duct or passage, a, cast inthe valve shell, so that a vacuum in the pipe leading to the condenserwill cause a vacuum above the piston, O. This duct or passage, on, it isobvious, might equally well be a separate pipe outside of the valvecasing; or the valve stem, D, might be hollow with a port leading fromthe same above the piston and opening into the vacuum chamber. Any ofthese means may be adopted for the purpose designated.

The upper end of the stem is provided with two nuts, 19 and 0,adjustable vertically thereon, the upper one of which has a lug, Z,carrying the pivot pin, 5, upon which the handle, H, is pivoted, whichhandle has a curved thin metal arm forming a spring extension, S, Whosefree end is pivotally attachedr-to the double link, L, that is adaptedto oscillate upon pivot pins, q, in the top of the cap or cover, Y,closing the vacuum chamber. The spring arm or extension of the handle,H, isprovided with a projection or stop, 25, adapted to engage acorresponding projection, 19, which forms a part of a second arm orextension, r, of the handle, H. The nuts,b and 0, maybe adjusted so asto regulate the extent to which these two projections overlap eachother, thereby regulating the amount of force or pressure necessary todisengage them.

As shown in Fig. 2,the valve is closed upon its lower seat cutting outthe condenser and opening the exhaust to the atmosphere. The piston inthe vacuum chamber being of greater area than the valve will have atendency to be pulled upward and unseat the valve 'from its lower seatwhen a vacuum is formed in the condenser, but the valve is lockedagainst its the spring arm, S, that in thelocked position of the valvethe central line of the link is slightly to the right of the centralline of the valve stem, or between the handle and the central line ofthe stem, so that the stronger the upward pull on the piston the morefirmly is the valve locked against its lower seat, because the handle,H, when lowered will be pushed with greater force against the stuffingbox which acts as a stop. Should the vacuum form suddenly, therebytending to raise the "valve with a jerk, before the valve has beenunlocked by hand, the excessive strain on the spring, S, will berelieved by the projection, p, which is so adjusted by the nuts, 17 andc, as to allow sufficient clearance for the connection between the linksand the spring to pass by the central line of the valve.

It will thus be seen that when the valve is in normal position, Fig. 1,the exhaust steam will be conveyed to the condenser, and whenever thevacuum in the condenser is destroyed by the backward flow of water fromthe condenser or by any other cause, the valve instantly drops to itslower seat from which it can only be unlocked by the operative, theexhaust in the meanwhile passing into the atmosphere. The vacuum cannotbe again put in communication with the engine until the valve has beenunlocked by the hand of the operative A who must be at his post, and theoperation of the valve as described will effectively prevent back flowof water from the condenser to the engine while the frequent reformingof the vacuum after it is broken can have no effect upon the enginetending to produce the dangerous racing which would otherwise result.

ber, a valve in said chamber between said seats, a piston of larger areathanthe valve connected to the valve, adapted to hold the valve againstthe upper seat when a vacuum is maintained above said piston and apassage connecting the space above the piston with the passage to thecondenser below the valve, substantially as described.

2. The combination with the valve casing having the two seats and thepassages connecting the said casing with the atmosphere and thecondenser, of the valve between the two seats, the piston of larger areaconnected to the valve and reciprocating in a chamber in the top of thecasing, a passage connecting the space above the piston with the passageto the condenser below the lower seat, whereby the valve may be closedagainst the lower seat when the vacuum in the condenser is destroyed,substantially as described.

3. The combination with the valve casing located in the exhaust pipe ofan engine and provided with passages to the atmosphere and condenser, ofthe two valve seats, the valve spindle, the valve between the two seats,the piston of larger area than the valve on the spindle above the valve,the passage connecting the space above thepiston with the condenserpassage, and a locking device upon the upper end of the spindle forautomatically locking the valve when 'it is closed against its lowerseat as the vacuum in the condenser is destroyed, substantially asdescribed.

' 4. The combination with the valve casing, the spindle passing throughthe stutfing box I and provided with the valve and the piston foractuating the same, the hand lever pivotally secured to said spindle,the spring arm connected to the handle at one end, and the linkspivotally attached to the valve casing at one end and connected to thespring at the other end, whereby the valve is automatically lockedagainst its lower seat when closed by the piston, substantially asdescribed.

5. The combination with the valve'casing and the spindle provided withthe valve and the piston for actuating the same, of the adjustable nutsupon the spindle, the handle provided with an arm having a stop thereonand pivoted to one of said nuts, the spring extending from the handleand having a stop adapted to engage thestop on the said arm, and thelink pivotally connected with the end of said spring and to thestantially as described.

6. The combination with the casing of the valve, spindle passing throughthe stuffing casing, subbox on the casing, of the handle attached to ithe spindle, the spring extension on said handle, and the link pivotallyconnecting said spring extension with the valve casing, and arranged soas to have the central line of the link between the handle and centralline of spindle when said handle is locked, substantially as described.

[o the spindle at its upper end, and the link pivotally connecting thespring arm of said handle with the casing, substantially as and for thepurposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of I 5 two subscribing witnesses.

JOSEPH MINER SEARLE.

Witnesses:

JOHN ROBERTS, M. R. P. LUESTEN.

